Summer holidays when you were a kid...

[russell]

I am not taking us all on holiday abroad this year as we are 5 and it costs a fortune for anything decent. Also it is not really a holiday as the twins are 3 and a nightmare (and the all prep/ flight with screaming kids would kill me off).

Am I cruel to think that you can still have a 'good summer holidays' with day trips, beach, parks etc here?

Just feelin a bit guilty that when my 6 year old returns to school and is asked what she did over the summer she will feel bad that she didnt have a 'family holiday' in Barbados like the rest of them (ffs)

What do you remember about your summer school holidays as a kid? Were you scarred for life by not going abroad?

 

[Trem]

My sort of best holiday was in Brixham in Devon.

A relative of my dads had died and left him some money so thats how we could afford to go there.

I remember Bombjack and Tron in the arcade and I remember the amount of steps I had to climb to get to our flat. I remember my dad filling a can of Special Brew with pebbles and throwing it into the sea and saying "someone will find that in hundreds of years". I also remember electrocuting myself on a broken light bulb and I remember the arguments my mum and dad had because he caught my mum sending a postcard to our neighbour who my dad caught having an affair with my mum.

But on the whole I remember Bombjack and Tron the most

 

[haarewin]

As kids we usually went to Woolacombe. Amazing beach, used to have some great places around for day trips. But the entire family would go at once, meaning there was about 30 of us and it was always fun. Me and my cousins would bury one of the grown ups in sand if they fell asleep.
Also went to Cornwall a few times. Had a great time.
As long as there is a beach and a pool and you don't drag kids around shops all day, they'll be happy. Never went abroad until I was 16. Noone else around here could afford to go away when we were kids anyway. So I wasn't scarred or upset by it, I had a brilliant time.

 

[ford prefect]

We were usually packed off to north Wales, or occasionally Ireland. We always had a fantastic time, usually in the arcades or on the beach just messing around.

Like Trem I associate various holidays by arcade machines, Bomber Man, Gauntlet and later on Operation Wolf, but that is generally where we were sent to keep us quiet and out of the way for a few hours a day, while adults do whatever adults do at butlins ect...

 

[Kryten]

Most memorable one here was a week in Barry Island, south wales. Gave my brother a black eye in our bedroom of one of those high rise chalets for some reason

 

[DaGaffer]

Oh yeah bad, bad mother!

British summers are character building and what kind of whackjob parent takes their little kids to Barbados? I'll tell you, the kind of bastard that drives a BMW X5 to school with one kid in the back. Just get your six year old to learn the mantra; "you're all nouveau-riche planet-destroying scum". She'll be the most popular kid in school

 

[old.Tohtori]

Never really understood the British "gotta get somewhere like Barbados!" each year. To me, a family holiday is with the family and where it is, is of secondary importance.

I'm going on my first real vacation this year, 28 of age

 

[Dukat]

What trem and ford said!

I've been abroad once, the rest of the time it was holidays to places on the british coast somewhere - a couple of times up in scottland, mostly in places like butlins or blackpool though, which was fun at the time

Hearing those noises the cheapy grabber machines make always reminds me of holidays, that general "arcades sound" of half a dozen machines all making thier own noise which mingles together, and the taste of frankfurter hotdogs makes me think of holidays too for some reason Time crisis is the one arcade machine always remember as being the one I saw on holiday.

I dont think I would really have appreciated going abroad before the age of 7 or 10 or so, and having younger siblings around if I was older than that would've only made it annoying I think, so I dont think the lack of a holiday abroad at 6 is all that bad

 

[taB]

90% of my holidays when young were in Scotland and my parents haven't been outside of Europe for >30 years. For me family holidays were about activities and having fun as a family group. We all did stuff together even if it was visiting some garden and me climbing trees while they looked at flowers. Of course it wasn't always harmonious as a brother I felt obliged to try and beat up my sister when the opportunity arose. This often resulted in me being bitten . Personally I don't see the point of a trip to Barbados or anywhere else similar at that age. What will they remember about it? Fuck all probably. Take them for a pony ride on a beach in England or something. At that age priorities are not the same as older children's or ours. Imo the people that jet-set about with young kids are doing them a dis-service and pretty selfish.

Anyways, despite my mostly insular up-bringing I am well travelled now and just love visiting new places.

 

[throdgrain]

My kids never went abroad for holidays either, we couldnt afford it. We had nice holidays in Wales etc though, and a couple of times we went to Center Parc, though that was because I got it free at work

Now my oldest son is 20, he got back from Tokyo yesterday, he went to New York last year, so he seems to be doing ok

 

[ECA]

Camping holidays in the south of france!

 

[Jimmy]

take em to blackpool or bridlington thats where i got taken to

2p and 1p arcades

 

[TdC]

Were you scarred for life by not going abroad?

I lived abroad. I was scarred for life by being forced to return to the UK every now and then.

 

[Kryten]

take em to blackpool or bridlington thats where i got taken to

2p and 1p arcades

Heh, that reminds me. Was about 6 years old, was taken to Mablethorpe near Skeggy for a week with the family in my uncle's campervan thing. Good fun.
Went into one of those arcades, I was given a small handful of coppers to wile away the time on the coin pushers, cheap slots and ancient one armed bandits.
Very last 2p coin I had went into a one-armer, for some reason I'll never remember, won £10.

In coppers.

Spent half an hour trying to pick the buggers up :|

 

[PLightstar]

Camping holidays in the summer are brill for kids, either in the Forest of Dean or somewhere on the North Devon coast, as adults the travel times and traffic is a killer but as kids you love it. Plenty of cheapish attractions around that your kids will love like Watermouth Castle or Coombe Martin Dinosaur and Wildlife park. Remember going to Tarr Steps in devon as a kid and making a rope swing, over the river my dad had a quick go to make sure it was 'safe' then I had a go swung out into the middle of the river as the branch snapped and I flew into the water fully clothed, my dad and me were laughing our heads off as my mum was telling my dad to grow up and telling me not to be so reckless.

 

[Lazarus]

we did Orkney just about every single year when I was young.

great place and friendly, but not much in the way of "Theme Parks" for kids (unless you count the rollercoaster ride over the Pentland Firth in a converted fishing boat)

 

[Chilly]

Did 6 european countries (before the riff-raff got let in) in 3 weeks with my step dad. Highlight was waking up from severe headache and nausia to see on the telly that Princess Di had been splatted in Paris. Oh, and the museum of graphics and pron in hamburg or something..could have been amsterdam.

 

[Bob007]

wow you lot where rich. Not once in my youth did we go on a "holiday". Infact the whole area i was drageed up in was so poor. I don't remember anyone of my friends going on a real holiday ever while i was young. Best we could hope for was a day out in West Kirby or if we had extra money New Brighton.

I spent my early summers building rope swings, playing football (heads and volleys anyone ? ), fishing, long walk with mum and dad blackberry picking (still miss these) and fighting with the next street over. As time went on, rope swings turned into motor bikes then into girls and the next street turned into the estate across the main road and fighting turned into drinking.

I enjoyed my youth. I had a bloody good time most of the time when looking back. Even tho we had no money, we had fun. Once about every 2 years i meet an old friend from back then, he's been my friend since i was 4, we went the same school and even started are working lives in the same place. We spend hours talking about the old days and how stuff turned out for both of us.

Good times

 

[Damini]

I am not taking us all on holiday abroad this year as we are 5 and it costs a fortune for anything decent. Also it is not really a holiday as the twins are 3 and a nightmare (and the all prep/ flight with screaming kids would kill me off).

Am I cruel to think that you can still have a 'good summer holidays' with day trips, beach, parks etc here?

Just feelin a bit guilty that when my 6 year old returns to school and is asked what she did over the summer she will feel bad that she didnt have a 'family holiday' in Barbados like the rest of them (ffs)

What do you remember about your summer school holidays as a kid? Were you scarred for life by not going abroad?

What about going to centre parcs? Not too expensive, I think they've got some places discounted at the moment, and plenty for the kids to do as well as the parents. Free swimming pool, activities (admitedly you have to pay for them, but the children's ones are quite reasonable), sauna treatments for you, and lots of country side walks, duck and squirrel feeding, cycle rides... We're going in September, and I'm really looking forward to it. I tend to go about twice a year now, once with the family and once with my friends.

 

[Jimmy]

Heh, that reminds me. Was about 6 years old, was taken to Mablethorpe near Skeggy for a week with the family in my uncle's campervan thing. Good fun.
Went into one of those arcades, I was given a small handful of coppers to wile away the time on the coin pushers, cheap slots and ancient one armed bandits.
Very last 2p coin I had went into a one-armer, for some reason I'll never remember, won £10.

In coppers.

Spent half an hour trying to pick the buggers up :|

lol i remember malethorpe been there a few times as well

 

[Edmond]

Been to Blackpool once, and i will die b4 i have to go back there again, what a shit hole. It seems it got to about 1970 and the town planners said 'yep, i think we have taken this place as far as it can go'. The sadest thing i saw was all the old dears looking at what was once their beloved tea rooms, turned into a yates or hogshead with a load of pissed chavs falling out of them

Anyway, rant over

We went away for 2 weeks in the summer when we were kids, a few times to spain, and also to cornwall and devon, but my memory of summer holidays was going out with my mates and just having a laugh, and i also think that days away to the beech or park spread over the 6 weeks is far more exciting to a 6 year old than cramming it in for 2 weeks and then you not being able to afford to do anything else when you get home

Always after a 2 week break you had the anti-climax of coming home and having to get back to normality b4 you had to go back to school

So, no russ, you are not a bad mother (but you knew i would say that anyway) its how you entertain them at the park/beech that makes it exciting and memorable for them, and thats what they will remember, so chill your boots

 

[tris-]

What do you remember about your summer school holidays as a kid? Were you scarred for life by not going abroad?

not really.
most of the best stuff was going camping for a few days at a butlins type affair.

back then though it was normal for kids to wonder off and make mates with other kids who wondered off. might not be the same now.

keep it cheap and do a couple of things around the country. alot better imo plus your kid can boast "i went here, here, here, went there and did that",

the red bull air show is on in london apparently. maybe dad can take the biggun there and you can do something with the littleuns. zoos? things like that.

just some ideas

isant it 6 weeks off they get? what about 1 main event in the middle then a few things either side of it?

 

[Uara]

pfffffft centre parks!!!! I work at the longleat one its alrite, but its definitely not worth the price that it costs. Especially if you go for the high end villa place!!!! The main advantage for working there is u can rent villas for like £75 and you can get in for like day trips for free.

 

[Munkey]

We went to Spain a few times and Cyprus quite alot when I was a kid. Far away enough to be exotic, close enough to not be too wierd. We tried holidays in the UK, but they never really worked out too great, Summer to me will always mean a foreign country and sun

That said, I had the pleasure of going down to Weymouth, Devon, and it was the most magical place in the world for me. This was about 3 months ago. It was sunny, had a sandy beach, still had arcades and stuff to do on the beach and had fantastic fish and chips.

Go Weymouth!

 

[SilverHood]

My parrents made a choice about car and house. Either that, or we went on a grand holiday once a year. Holiday it was!

France, Turkey, Spain, Hungary, off we went. I don't remember most of them, just small memories.

What I do remember, is when I was a kid was going to stay with my aunts for 2-3 weeks in the summer (sometimes after the family holiday), playing with my cousins every day. Crab fishing in the habour, building huuuuuuuuuuuuuge lego bases, raiding apple and strawberry fields, waterfights, hide and seek in the wheatfields and building secret locations in the forest.

It was never so much about where you went, more about the people you went with.

 

[DaGaffer]

That said, I had the pleasure of going down to Weymouth, Devon,

Weymouth is in Dorset.

 

[DaGaffer]

I lived abroad for a bit when I was young, but the first foreign family holiday we had once we came home was camping in the South of France when I was 13 or 14 (which also featured my first serious attempt to get drunk and chat up a girl) Before that it was always British holidays; usually camping, usually wet, usually sat in traffic jams with me and my little brother fighting on the back seat of the car (in memory it was always boiling hot going to and from the holiday, but almost always shit weather while we were there).

As for the rest of the summer holidays; I don't think our parents saw us or expected to see us from dawn until dusk; we were usually either in the woods or down at the beach and even when we got home we used to "camp" in the back garden; even when my parents did take us for day trips or weekends, it would be the same; "bye" and head off exploring. When I think about it, we did some seriously dangerous shit as well (sometimes with injuries to go with it, usually not), but, [old fart mode ON] I wouldn't swap my childhood for a modern one [/old fart mode OFF].

 

[russell]

I know its fine.

I did think its all about the fun and who you are with, rather than the place. Center parcs is something that does not really appeal -sorry.

I plan to do day trips to the beach, make use of the £1.50 sat morning cinema (if its raining), Frimley Park Lodge, Frensham Ponds, St Georges Park, paddling pool in the garden, friends over etc. (went to paddle in the lido pool at Stoke Park in Guildford, free but v.vv.vv busy). We also have tesco club card vouchers for LegoLand and were given tickets to Paulton's Park.

'Granny Liz' is coming over from Valencia, Spain soon and we are going up to stay with family in sunny Cardiff next week (which my eldest is quite excited about as 'it is a different country' -even tho it always chucks down with rain as soon as we cross the severn bridge). After Granny Liz has been here for a week, she is going to take the 6 yr old home to Spain for a week and then I will pop out and get her -so she will get a cheapy foriegn holiday away from the twinnies which will make her feel really special!!

So the next 6 weeks will be fairly action packed after all.

I feel lucky that there is so much round here to do that is cheap, or free with vouchers and that i have good friends and family to entertain them.

Still good to hear all your memories tho....

 

[Munkey]

Weymouth is in Dorset.

I couldn't remember which "D" it was. All i remember was that my friend kept trying to give me scones with jam and cream so I assumed it was Devon. Either way, a place well worth visiting.

 

[Appollo]

Spent most my child holidays in Cornwall, Devon or Dorset. I mostly remember N.Devon and Croyde, always had good times. I now take my family who love it to Croyde Bay, ill be there 1st week of Sept Oh we once as a kid went to Switzerland towing a caravan in my dads work van 0o that was....different